The popular tourist island of St. Maarten cannot expect commercial flights to begin for at least the next two weeks and maybe as long as six, some travelers are being told. Airlines that usually provide service into the island include American Airlines, JetBlue, Delta, Air France, WestJet and KLM.

Still there is a lot of work to do at Princess Juliana International Airport. When the curfew was lifted in St. Maarten on Sunday, local photographer and plane spotter Chris Garner, set out to photograph the damage. She was startled to see a KLM Boeing 747 flying low over the island's famous Maho Beach.

The big blue jumbo jet has been flying into the resort community for so long it is practically a symbol of St. Maarten and many locals and tourists were dismayed when the Dutch carrier replaced the 747 with a smaller jetliner last fall. So Garner was heartened by the sight.

Getting a shot of the Queen of the Sky back over the island, "made my day and made it all worth while to be living here," she said in an email during a brief window when she could upload messages and photos she'd captured.

Christine Garner

The Sonesta Maho Beach Resort by the airport was badly damaged.

During her travels around the airport, Garner saw devastating damage at the nearby Sonesta Maho Beach Resort and the casino across the street. She snapped photos of palm trees snapped in two and piles of debris, already swept into heaps ready to be hauled away.

The airport fence was blown down. Garner noted pieces being put back in place. "Most of the damage is with the roof of the airport," she said. After noting that Irma turned the area into a war zone and that media stories of bad behavior were overstated, Garner said, "The people here are extremely positive and we will rebuild and make St. Maarten better than ever."